A Comprehensive Guide on Hiring an Electrician

Hiring an electrician is essential to defending yourself from any future accidents. Accidents happen but it is important to ensure that we are cautious; hiring a n electrician who lacks the experience and the training can be fatal. Without proper knowledge the electrician will not be able to a proper job and you will suffer in the future. For example, if your appliances have minor issues and you hire an electrician without any proper training or specific knowledge on fixing the said the appliance; this could lead to further damage. This is why hiring a electrician with proper training and experience is vital.

Hiring an Electrician

1.    Licensing: If you are searching for a good electrician in London, then you need ask for a license of the electrician, since, electricians are strictly regulated in the UK. The electricians need to have proper qualification and later apprenticeship to gain necessary experience before getting their registration. The electricians in the UK can get their registration under various schemes; such as NICEIC (or National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting), the member electrician requires to go under frequent assessment to make sure they are up to date with the safety protocols. Other than that, member under NAPIT ( or National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers are more focused on electrical installation; if you are a new homeowner then you can hire an electrician under NAPIT to ensure that your electrician is experienced with electrical installation.

2.    Experience: If I search for a local electrician near me, then one thing I would like to know is how much experience he has in electrical installation. In this field experience is critical as a small mistake can cause big accidents. This is why you want to hire an electrician with relevant experience in the field. For example, if an electrician is experienced in fixing appliance such as fridge or washing machine; but has limited expertise in electrical installation. In such cases if you want electrical installation in your house then you have to hire a different electrician who is well versed with household electrical installation. To know the expertise of the electrician you can ask him about his past projects to ensure he is suitable for your project. This is important since the electricians not only install electric but also assess any persisting flaw existing in the system. A more experienced electrician would be able to assess the flaw very easily. Lastly the experienced electricians are more likely to work as per the rules and safety standards of the government.

3.    Prices: Another important aspect I would keep in mind when I try to find an electrician near me, is how am I willing to pay for the work and what is the ongoing rate in the market for that specific work. The cost of the service depends on the type of work that the electrician is required to do. For small jobs like installing light fixtures or fixing any appliances the prices are lower than complex services like installing the wires or upgrading the consumer unit. Sometimes hidden faults also raise the cost, for example while upgrading the consumer unit, your electrician finds faults in the wiring. In such cases he would also have to fix the faults before upgrading the consumer unit; the problems are frequent in old homes. The location of the service also has an effect on the pricing as electrician in the prime locations charge more. Lastly if you call for a electrician on an urgent basis then he will charge you more since he is prioritizing your work over others. In UK the licensed electrician near me charges somewhere around 40 to 70 pounds in an hour depending upon the location and the complexity of the work. To get a better pricing you can ask multiple electricians to give a quote for the work and choose one with the best pricing.

4.    Permits: In the UK when I try to find electrician near me, one thing that I keep in mind is that I need to hire someone who permits with building regulations to ensure the safety. In UK specifically the electricians need permits to maintain a safe working condition.  Obtaining Part P is necessary if an electrician wants to work at a domestic building in the UK. Under Part P, some the work needs to be notified to building regulator before stating. For example, works that are high risk like replacing the fuse box or working the bathroom or kitchen needs to be notified to building control beforehand.

5.    Insurance: Professional electricians carry the public liability insurance in case something happens in work; the coverage amounts ranges between 1 million pounds to 5 million pounds. Other than that, if the electrician has employees, then he also needs to have Employer’s liability Insurance.  Make sure electricians you are hiring have these otherwise you might liable in case something happens.

These are few points I remember while trying to find the best electrician near me; this is essential as hiring the right electrician is important in the long run and your safety depends on it. Electric Works London in Barlby Road does electric work at a reasonable price.